Episode 244: Love What You Do

Above: the cover art for Episode 244 features one of my 2017 ICAD drawings in ballpoint (based on a photo at Sktchy). My ICAD series this year is in ballpoint on mixed paper on index card. So far, I am focusing on portraits.

Episode 244 of the CMP, a Creativity Matters Podcast

In this episode of the CMP, thinking about creative teens and my own perpetual “out of age” feeling, going through a few recent sketchbooks with my mom, thoughts on doing a daily challenge and how it differs from working on single works over time, and an important message about loving what you do. I was away in June, and I recorded the bulk of this show with a handheld recorder. It may sound a bit different than when I record at home, but it gave me the chance to get these thoughts locked in–in real time. Love that!

(Yes, I do mention a “dead cat” in this show, and it’s true, that is what the cover I needed is called. I have one now, so we will see in the future if it makes a difference for portable recordings!)

The Flow of Episode 244 (and relevant links):

It came, it came, it came! (This is really the mantra of this one)

Recognize that you won’t love “every” piece you make equally during a daily challenge, and that’s okay!

Give yourself permission to love what you do. (It is OKAY to love what you do! We don’t get told this enough.)

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4 thoughts on “Episode 244: Love What You Do”

I try to sew every day, but I don’t know if that is like a daily challenge. I am making progress, but not doing the same thing over and over like in ICAD. I find that thinking of a daily practice rather than a daily challenge helps me.

I have a couple of thoughts about audience. They are in a random order without regard to importance:
1. I write my blog for myself, first and foremost. While I want my message to be out there, if I rely on other people for validation, it will be meaningless.
2. I am constantly encouraged when random people I know say “oh I saw on your blog….”. I am stunned that these people read regularly. I have no spy cameras and if they don’t leave comments, I never know they were there.
3. People don’t have time. I can’t go to each blog I would like to every day. I assume the same is true for other people.
4. When I go other blogs and leave a comment, I find that those people come and read my blog.
5. I am also encouraged to leave comments when a host acknowledges a particularly good comment on his/her show. No, I don’t need the attention, but it tells me that the host is reading and thinking about the comments I have made.
6. I use my blog as my own personal archive. If I want to know when I made a quilt and what I said about it, I can go back and look. It is a tool for me.
7. I try to interact with my readers – follow their blogs, follow them on Twitter, etc. I think that forming relationships, even limited ones, can help develop more interactive audiences.

Thanks, Jaye. Great perspective on this creative thing we all do. It sounds like maybe I should have left the 2 minutes out! But, really, if I didn’t agree with all of this, I wouldn’t still be here, doing what I love. Thanks so much, always, for listening to the CMP and leaving feedback. Thanks for the article link, too!